He and co-organizer Derek Popke hope the second edition later this month will be even bigger.

The first sign it was going to be an even bigger deal is the addition of two big backers: ex-Vancouver Canuck Kevin Bieksa and the Canadian Men’s Health Foundation.

Bieksa, now a exceedingly popular Sportsnet analyst and a national champion for the Canadian Men’s Health Foundation, posted to social media on Thursday about his support for Stecher’s camp.

This year’s camp, scheduled for Aug. 26 to 29 at Richmond’s Minoru Arenas, is once again raising funds on behalf Stecher’s TS51 Foundation.

Bieksa and Stecher are old friends, Popke explains, going back nearly a decade when Popke first started organizing pre-season skates for local pros. Bieksa’s son Cole would participate in Popke’s Vancouver Hockey School summer camps and dad Kevin would be around to skate with former Canucks teammates such as Alex Edler and younger locals like Stecher.

After the success of last year’s event, Bieksa approached Stecher and Popke to find out how he could support their work. In year one, Stecher’s TS51 Foundation directed all proceeds to Diabetes Canada. This year, the beneficiary is the CMHF, at Bieksa’s suggestion.

Diabetes Canada is a partner of the CMHF. Raising funds for diabetes research is a cause close to Stecher’s heart, as his father Peter died four years ago due to complications from diabetes.

“The Canadian Men’s Health Foundation deals with men’s health in general, mental health, chronic illness. It’s inclusive of causes like diabetes,” Popke said.

“We consider ourselves the leading spot in the country when it comes to men’s health. And the message, it’s not just about men, it’s men and the impact on their families. Our role is to educate men and to advocate on behalf of men and their families,” he said. He said he and his colleagues recognize the importance of engaging with everyone — men, wives, daughters, son, friends, parents — about men’s health issues because no one’s issues exist in isolation.

The big thing is to encourage questions.

“It’s OK to have questions, to ask about things you may not be comfortable talking with your friends about,” he added.

And the CMHF has many partners, from government to other health foundations and beyond. The CMHF sits at an important axis, he said.

“(Other agencies) come to us because we do have connections,” he said. “Through people like Kevin they can reach out and start a dialogue. Approachable, that’s who we are as an organization.”

All four days of last year’s event were well-attended, especially by kids, which pleased Stecher.

“It’s even better than I’d hoped,” he said at the conclusion of last year’s event with a smile as he signed autographs for kids and caught up with some familiar faces from the city where he grew up.

That ability to get close with the community was a big driving point for Stecher and Popke’s planning.

“It’s a community event, for kids to come and meet players and watch how they train,” Popke said.

The event’s success also drew the interest of new sponsor Lululemon.

“They saw the positive community impact we had last year with youth hockey players watching the camp and wanted to support it,” Popke said. Popke once again is donating his time — last year, Yard Athletics also donated their time to lead the camp’s off-ice training.

The players loved the experience.

“Throughout the summer, there are groups of NHL players who do small-group skill training around the city and this provides an opportunity to gather more players who are around into a competitive camp-style atmosphere,” Popke said.

A full roster hasn’t been confirmed, but Popke and Stecher are rounding it out.

Just hours after Bieksa’s post, Popke said he was already dealing with a surge of inquiries from players in the Vancouver area who were looking to participate. Last year’s roster numbered about 20.

Committed returning local players already include goalie Laurent Brossoit, defenceman Kyle Burroughs and forwards Brendan Gallagher and Sam Reinhart.